WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Making its first cross-country trip as a member of the ACC, No. 1 Stanford (8-1, 0-1 ACC) was handed its first loss of the year, dropping a 1-0 decision at No. 13 Wake Forest (7-2-1, 2-1 ACC) on Thursday night from Spry Stadium.
Wake Forest had defeated then-No. 2 Virginia 3-0 in its previous match on Sunday.
The only goal of the night was scored by Wake Forest’s Emily Colton in the 30th minute. Colton was unmarked and received a pass near the top of the box before rocketing a right-footed shot into the upper right corner of the goal.
The goal was just the third allowed by the Cardinal this season, including the first scored by an opponent in the run of play.
Senior Haley Craig did all she could to keep the Cardinal in the match, making five saves as the Demon Deacons managed a 14-11 advantage in shots.
Stanford’s best opportunity came in the ninth minute as redshirt junior Andrea Kitahata received a pass and went one-on-one with Wake Forest’s goalkeeper Valentina Amaral. Amaral came charging out of her net and managed to push Kitahata’s shot wide of the goal to keep the match scoreless.
The Demon Deacon keeper finished the night with four saves.
Stanford will look to regroup and get back in the win column on Sunday when it travels to NC State for a 10 a.m. PT kickoff.
MATCH NOTES
• Stanford is winless against Wake Forest in four all-time contests (0-3-1) – the only opponent of at least three matches to record an undefeated record against the Cardinal
• Stanford was unbeaten in 44 of its previous 45 matches entering Thursday, with the lone loss coming in the 2024 national title match vs. Florida State
• The Cardinal was one of four teams to carry an unblemished 1.000 win percentage into the match on Thursday
• Stanford was shut out for the first time since a scoreless draw at then-No. 23 USC on October 26, 2023